


Branching

by Tyger_Tyger



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Bring me your Stucky broken hearts I heals them, Do-Over, Endgame end scene, Fix-It, M/M, Spoilers, Timey-Wimey, You say paradox I say parallel, branches, it's fine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-26
Updated: 2019-04-26
Packaged: 2020-02-04 20:10:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18611647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tyger_Tyger/pseuds/Tyger_Tyger
Summary: Major spoilers for Endgame. In the 24 hours since I watched the movie my brain has been doing gymnastics trying to figure this one out, and this is where it landed.Just your run-of-the-mill post-movie fix-it do-over.You might need to squint to see their relationship, but it's there.





	Branching

It was a decent view really, from the bench. Bucky stood behind it, watched Sam walk away, pausing every now and then like he wasn’t sure where he was all of a sudden. 

“Hey Buck.”

“Hey Steve.”

Bucky sat down beside him, glanced over. 

“You look like old man Peters from the corner store.”

Steve huffed a laugh, nodded slowly.

“I had to go back to her, Buck.”

“I know.”

“You knew I would, huh?”

“Yep. Could always read you like a book, Rogers. Always know when you’re about to do something stupid.”

The breeze shifted through the trees. Gulls screeched from somewhere out on the water. 

“I know we said no branches. But there was one that was unavoidable Buck, I swear. Nothing I could do to stop it. So I thought maybe I’d just stay there instead, put a few things right I couldn’t do the first time around, here. Found you in ’49, burnt Hydra out in ’51. They came back a few times but we took care of it.” 

“We, huh? You and me taking on the world?”

“Same as always, pal.”

Bucky crossed his ankles, leant back on the bench and looked up at the sky.

“Why’d you come back, Steve?”

The sigh rattled out of him slowly.

“You’re both gone, there. Peg died a while back and the grandkids are fine. Just fine Buck, you should see them. Healthy and strong, and have their own kids who are all grown up too and I – I can’t. I can’t watch my children get old and die while I stay old and alive, not after Suzy, not again. I always knew it was a one-way ticket back here so I waited, but I can’t do that again.”

Bucky put his arm around Steve's shoulder, tugged him close. Pressed his cheek against his hair, waited until his breath evened out again.

“That sounds rough, buddy. Real rough.”

“Yeah.” Steve sniffed, placed his hand over Bucky’s. “But they’re fine, it’s fine.”

The sun shifted through the clouds, made the light dapple on the grass. Steve’s body felt like a shadow against his, a funny mix of the strength and frailty he’d been separately, together now all at once. 

“So you kept the suit? Or did you just come home so I could look after you and your rickety old chest again, like the good old days?”

Steve barked a laugh, elbowed Bucky as he sat up again.

“Asshole. Yeah, I kept the damn suit. Is Bruce still over there or did he go back inside?”

“No, he’s still over there.” Bucky said, turning around and raising a hand to wave. “Do you think he’s figured it out yet?”

“Probably not, it’s only been what – fifteen minutes? Gotta give him twenty at least.”

Bucky shifted on the bench to face Steve, watched him slowly adjust his jacket then cross his hands on his lap. 

“You really wanna do this?”

“Yeah.” Steve’s eyes were blue glass caught in spider webs, grey around the edges but still determined. “Til the end of the line, pal. Doesn’t matter what time that line’s in. It’s you and me.”

Bucky smiled, looked down at his feet.

“Come on then, old man.” Bucky stood, held his hand out and helped Steve stand. “You gonna make it over there or have I gotta carry you?”

“I can fucking walk, Buck.” he replied, raising an arm to wave at Bruce. “Let me lean on you though, I’ve been sat there a while.”

“Jesus Christ, did you just ask me for help? Hey, can we keep you this old for a while, just a couple a days? Just to make up for all those years you wouldn’t let me do a damn thing for you without chewing me out about how you could do it yourself?”

Bruce waved back, slowly and mechanically like he didn’t have a clue what was going on. 

“If you had any idea how much my knees hurt right now you would take that back, son.”

“Fuck Steve, don’t call me that. Ok, fine, we’ll do it straight away, jeez. You what, just gotta go through without the bracelet thingy on?”

“Something like that. I’m sure Bruce will figure it out. He already did it before by accident.”

“Steve?” Bruce shouted over, hand on his forehead, eyes wide with realisation.

“I think he’s got it.”

“Yeah, he’s got it, Bucky. Let’s go do something really stupid.”


End file.
